And for today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Fat Quarter Shop is giving away a The North Pole Layer Cake by Stacy Iest Hsu for Moda. How perfect for some Christmas in July sewing!!! Well, at least it is the last day of July, tee hee hee

You have two entry chances, the second being optional, and please leave a separate comment for each. All Entries are welcome, including International Entries. Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger ;)

Monday, July 30, 2018

EEEkkk!!!! It's one of my favorite day's of the
year!!!!!! Today, is the announcement of this years annual Happy
Quilting Quilt Along, and I am so very excited :) And you
all know I love Stars and this year, we are making all the Stars in the Seeing
Stars Quilt Along!!!!

We are going to be doing basic piecing of course, but then this design also
throws in some improve piecing, some machine applique, and even a bit of curves
;) So ya, lot of fun technique all tied up in this one quilt along
and if you have never tried improve, applique, or curves, don't be
scared!!! We are going to tackle them together and have a great time
learning and piecing together!!! Doesn't that just look like so
much fun!!!!

So like in previous years, there will be easy step by step
directions, but this year we are going to be on a weekly schedule as the tasks are broken down a bit more :) And another change,
because of the layout of this quilt, there is only going to be one size option
this year. I know, that's a big change, but it just didn't work to try
and take this random layout and make it into a whole ton of layout
options. So this year we are all making the same size quilt, which
just happens to be 80" x 80" so it is just perfect for laying out or
cuddling up with :) And if you want it a bed size, you can always add a border to make it 90" x 90" for a queen size bed.

Be sure to pop in next week for the Fabric Requirements, Fabric options in a range of colors palates and at a discount, and the
reveal of fabulous fabric prizes that include weekly progress prizes and Grand
Prizes at the end. But mostly, just be sure to join in for the amazing fun with fabric and friends!!!! The Quilt Along will run from mid August through
mid October and is going to be oh so great!!! Here is the schedule . . .

August 6th- Intro,
Fabric Requirements, and Prizes Announcement

August 15th - Double
Star Block

August 22nd - Curvy
Star Block

August 29th -
Pinwheel Star Block

September 5th -
Improv Star Block

September 12th -
Basic Star Block

September 19th -
Applique Star Block

September 26th -
Piecing Top and Grand Prize Linky

October 17th- Seeing
Stars Parade and Grand Prize Winners

It all starts next week!!! So what do you say??
Do you want to Quilt-Along with me??? Grab a button and/or get your
#seeingstarsquiltalong posting ready!! We are going to have some amazing Seeing
Stars Quilting Fun!!!

And for easy access, I will
be updating the weekly links on the Quilt-Along Page as well as this post.

Saturday, July 28, 2018

July's Sew Sampler box theme was Adventure Awaits and my goodness, has July been filled with adventure. What with 3 weeks of camping and most of it in the rain and then a thrown in surgery to repair my son's torn elbow tendon, well I think we can say we have had our fill of Adventure this month :) And what better way to come home to it all, than with an adventure in amazing quilting goodness!!! Eeekkk, this box is so fun!!!

First off, you have this adorable Petite Vintage Adventure Rolie Polie!!! I just love these colors together, and the prints are oh so cute with little campers and bicycles ;) And the Daisy Dresden quilt pattern is just to cute for words!!! And I was thrilled to see that everything you need to make this quilt was also included in the box :)

Staring with a EZ Quilting Dresden Set!!!! I absolutly love making Dresden quilts (this Double Dresden Delight is still a super popular tutorial on the blog ;) And this is one ruler that I am happy to have 2 of. And I so excited about that bonus Bamboo Point Turner that came with the ruler, that is so going to come in handy!! (Much better than the BBQ skewer I was using before ;) And how adorable is that Vintage Trim from Bee in My Bonnet!!! It's going to be so hard to take that off that fantastic wooden spool, it might just have to serve as decoration for a little while before I can use it ;)

And of course, with a new box, there is a new Barn Block!!! After some debate, I decided that I actually didn't like the grey and black placement switched out in the blocks like I did last month. The grey just doesn't pop like the black. So I went back to the same layout as the pattern and will have to remake Block 3 ;) Ah well, better to decide now than 6 blocks into it, tee hee hee. And this month's block has some metallic features. Gotta love finding special scraps in the drawer. To fun!!!

And that's my July Sew Sampler Box!!! And wow, it sure has an adventure of quilting goodness waiting for me to jump into :)

Thursday, July 26, 2018

It's Christmas in July and I am so excited to share with you a new Christmas Quilt and Tutorial!!! When the wonderful folks at Riley Blake Designs asked me if I wanted to make something up with Carta Bella's new Christmas Delivery Fabric I was all over it!!! It instantly reminded me of a Christmas Quilt that we had growing up that was a cheater print of patchwork goodness. And since that quilt is long gone, I set out to recreate it. And I came up with a Christmas Collection of my favorite patchwork :) Isn't it just so fun!!!

I absolutely love these fun Holiday prints, and they just shine in all of my favorite basic patchwork blocks. This quilt is comprised of 4 basic blocks. A Square, A 4 Patch, a Half Square Triangle, and a Quarter Square Triangle. Then just mix them all up and play until you get that perfect patchwork balance to make you smile!!!

And the great thing about this design is no two quilts will ever look alike, making it a special holiday treasure all your own. And with basic piecing blocks it will go together in a snap, making it a great "go to" Christmas quilt that you can make again and again.

We will start with the pile of 21 squares. Trim from two sides of each square so they now measure 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square. I like to use an 8 1/2" square ruler to do this as it speeds up the cutting ;) You will now have 21 Square Blocks measuring 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square and they can be set aside, super simple right!!

STEP 3 - MAKING THE FOUR PATCH BLOCKS

Now we can move onto our next set of Blocks, the Four Patch Blocks. Grab a stack of 10" squares and start but cutting each square into (4) 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" squares. I like to trim the square to 9" x 9" first, cutting off all the pinked edges, and then simply subcut 4 1/2" horizontally and 4 1/2" vertically to make (4) 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" squares. When you are all done cutting, you should have (80) 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" squares.

We will start by stitching the (80) squares into 2 Patch Units. To do this, place two squares with right sides together aligning the raw edges. Stitch a 1/4" seam along one edge. And then press the seam allowance towards the darker fabric.

Chain stitching here will save you a lot of time. Rather than clipping your threads at the end of each patchwork set, simply keep feeding sets through your machine until you have stitched a 1/4" seam along the side of all 40 units. Then clip your threads and press the seam allowances.

Now to make 2 Patches into 4 Patches. Place a Two Patch Unit onto a second Two Patch Unit with right sides together. Align and Nest/Pin the center seam. Stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge. Again, you can simply chain stitch all 20 sets here to save time. Then clip the threads and press the seam allowance open.

Just like that, you have 20 Four Patch Blocks that will measure 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square. And now these can be set aside and you are ready to move onto your next block!!

STEP 4 - MAKING HALF SQUARE TRIANGLE BLOCKSNow we can move onto our next set of Blocks, the Half Square Triangle Blocks. Grab a second stack of 10" squares On the wrong side of 10 of the squares, draw a diagonal line from corner to corner.

Place a Print Square and a Marked Print Square with right sides together aligning the raw edges. You will be stitching a 1/4" seam to either side of the drawn line. Again, Chain stitching all 10 sets will save you time and thread.

Simply start with stitching the 1/4" seam along the left hand side of the drawn line on all 10 sets. Then clip the threads between your sets, and repeat the process for the other side of the drawn line.
You will finish with 10 sets all stitched on either side of the drawn line. Again. clip the threads between your sets.

Now move to your cutting mat. Cut the square sets along the drawn line to make two sets of triangles. Again, Press the seam allowance towards the darker fabric of the Half Square Triangle units. You will have 20 Units total.

Now trim all the units to 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square. Be sure to match the seam allowance and the diagonal line on your square ruler to ensure your HST's are trimmed square. Again, having an 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square ruler at this point will save time and make it a whole lot easier, especially when paired with a rotating cutting mat :) If you haven't trimmed HST's before, you can see this tutorial for more detailed instructions ;)

And now you have 20 Half Square Triangle Blocks that will measure 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square. And again, these can be set aside and you are ready to move onto your last set of blocks!!

STEP 5 - MAKING QUARTER SQUARE TRIANGLE BLOCKS

Now we can move onto the last set of blocks, the Quarter Square Triangle Blocks. And the good news is, they start out just like a HST Block. So grab the final stack of 10" squares and follow the same HST instructions as above to the point of trimming. Do Not Trim the blocks at this point!!!

Now take your 20 Untrimmed HST's and on 10, draw a diagonal line in the opposite direction of the seam allowance as shown below.

Place a Untrimmed HST Unit and a Marked Untrimmed HST Unit with right sides together, aligning the raw edges and nesting the center seams as shown below . You will be stitching a 1/4" seam to either side of the new drawn line and again, chain stitching all 10 sets will save you time and thread.

Once you are done stitching and clipping your threads, move again to the cutting mat. Cut along the drawn line to make two sets of quarter triangles. Press the seam allowances open to avoid bulk in the center.

And now, you can trim to 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square. Be sure to match the seam allowance and the diagonal line on your square ruler as well as the center dot of your ruler and the center point of your block to ensure your HST's are trimmed square. Again, use the 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square ruler and a rotating cutting mat to speed things up :)

And now you have 20 Quarter Square Triangle Blocks that will measure 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square. And they can now be put with all your other blocks ready to make your quilt top!!!

STEP 6 - MAKING THE QUILT TOPAnd with the blocks done, it is time to make a quilt top!!! Layout your blocks in 9 rows with 9 blocks in each row as shown below. Play with the placement until it is pleasing to the eye. This is where the endless possibilities come into play so really mix things around until you get a look that you like. Taking a picture of your layout is the easiest way to do this as your eye can see everything at once, and it is also great to have to refer back to so you make sure you don't mix up your block placement :)

Once you have a layout you like, it's time to sew the blocks into rows. To do this, place the second block onto the first block (shown in row 1) in each row with right sides together. Chain Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge of each set in each row. Put your sewn pieces back in your layout. And now you just repeat this for each block in the row. Place your third block in each row onto your second block (shown in row 2) with right sides together and align and stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge. Repeat this until you have stitched all of the blocks into rows.

Now you can press the rows. I like to press the Odd Rows to the Left and the Even Rows to the Right. This allows me to nest them when I sew the rows together. And your quilt top should look like this. Again, I always find it helpful to keep laying your pieces back out each time you stitch on them. This will help you keep the layout you like ;) And now, all that is left is to sew the rows together into a quilt top.

We will do this in thirds to make it easier :) Place the second row onto the first row with right sides together. Place the fifth row onto the fourth row with right sides together. And finally, place the eighth row onto the seventh row with right sides together as shown below. Align and pin all of the seams in the three row sets. Chain stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edges of all three row sets.

Clip your threads and lay your rows back out again. Now place the third row onto the second row with right sides together. Place the sixth row onto the fifth row with right sides together. And finally, place the ninth row onto the eighth row with right sides together as shown below. Align and pin all of the seams in the three row sets. Chain stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edges of all three row sets.

And now, only two seams left!!! Place the middle rows onto the top rows with right sides together. Align and pin all of your seams and then stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge.

And finally, place the bottom rows onto the middle rows with right sides together. Align and pin all of your seams and then stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge. Now just press all of your 8 seam allowances open and you are done!!!

And you have a beautiful Christmas Collection Quilt Top!!!! It will measure 72 1/2" x 72 1/2" and really, didn't it go together fast and oh so much fun!!!

STEP 7 - FINISHING IT UP

So now it is time to turn that finished quilt top into a finished Quilt ;) Time to Baste It, Quilt It, and Bind It!!! Which is a whole lot in one little sentence. If you are new to quilting, you can see my Finishing Your Quilt Series of video tutorials that will walk you through Basting, Quilting, and Binding step by step ;)

When it came time to quilt mine I decided on an all over medium ribbon curl. I just love how it looks like the curls on packages :) And I used a lovely red So Fine thread that just adds that last bit of holiday flair and matched perfectly in my backing :) And you just gotta love all of that curly swirly on all those sharp angles, just perfect. I kept the quilting to a rather large size as I wanted this quilt to be super soft for the best snuggles!!

Use the (8) 2 1/2"x Width of Fabric binding strips you cut at the beginning to create a binding and add it to the quilt. And your Done!!!

STEP 8 - ENJOY QUILT

And now, just curl up and enjoy your festive Christmas Collection Quilt!!! It finishes at 72" x 72" so it is a great size to snuggle up with in front of a fire. And as you can see, with all that chain stitching and the Basic Blocks, it will go together super fast and is so much fun to make!!! And Christmas Delivery is just the perfect fabric to remake this favorite childhood Christmas quilt of mine, I really can't believe how much it looks like that old cheater print !!

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial and if you make your own Christmas Collection Quilt I would love to see it!! You can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com or add it to my flickr group here or post it to social media with #happyquiltingwithmc ;) I can't wait to see your Christmas Collection Quilts!!!

Thank you so much to my wonderful friends at Riley Blake for letting me bring you a little Christmas in July. And to see more Christmas Delivery projects be sure to hop over to the Riley Blake blog ;)

Thanks for stopping in today to share this tutorial. And thanks for popping in each and every day. I am just so grateful to have this space to share my love of quilting!!!

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